There are between 30 and 64 births each year in Kettleman City. In 15 of the 22 years since California’s public health department began tracking birth defects, all babies in the town were healthy, and in five other years, only one birth defect occurred. But in the last two years and 10 months, residents say, at least 11 babies have been born with serious birth defects. Three eventually died; another was stillborn. Most have cleft lips or palates, and some have other, graver maladies. “When my child was born,” Magdalena says, “I thought she was the only one with a deformity. But when it began happening to other babies, I realized there was something abnormal in my community.”

Maricela Mares-Alatorre, who is related to Maura by marriage, has been battling Kettleman City’s hazardous-waste dump for years; her son Miguel, 15, is part of a youth group called Kids Protecting our Planet.

KETTLEMAN CITY—a dot on the map so insignificant that it is technically not even a town but a “census-designated place”—rose out of the scrublands of the western San Joaquin Valley in the late 1920s, following the discovery of oil in the nearby Kettleman Hills. The second-longest street in town, all half a mile of it, is named General Petroleum Avenue, and the third-longest is Standard Oil Avenue. Those names are as close to wealth as the town gets. Nearly half its 1,500 residents live below the poverty line, according to the 2000 census. A couple of miles south on Highway 41, at the junction with Interstate 5, sits an agglomeration of motels, gas stations, an In-N-Out Burger, and a Starbucks, but the town itself has no pharmacy, high school, or movie theater. It also lacks sidewalks, a supermarket, and a clean drinking-water supply (though the 444-mile California Aqueduct, which conveys water from the Sierras to dozens of Southern California cities, runs just past its border). Most Kettleman families travel 32 miles to Hanford, the county seat, to shop for food and bottled water.

Kettleman City mothers—including Magdalena Romero, left, and Maura Alatorre, center—show photos of their babies to EPA officials.

Kettleman City does have a few convenience and liquor stores, three well-attended churches (Catholic, evangelical, and Pentecostal), and one tiny restaurant, La Perla, where the most popular menu item is a $3 burrito. Then again, popularity at La Perla is a relative concept; on most days it attracts only five or six patrons. Many families hail from the same Mexican town—La Piedad, in the state of Michoacán. Many have lived in Kettleman City for three generations; others arrived in the last few years. Maricela Mares-Alatorre, a 38-year-old teacher in a GED program for farmworkers, is one of a tiny number of residents with a college degree. She describes Kettleman City as having “a Mayberry feeling with a Latino twist—that’s why I stay. Even if I left, that doesn’t mean the problems get solved. There are still vulnerable people here who can’t speak for themselves, and we’re supposed to abandon them?”

The “problems” are not just the recent wave of birth defects, but the many possible explanations for it, and, most worrisome of all, the prospect that the reason will never be identified. That uncertainty—which no one quite wants to admit—hovers over the town like smog.

Alatorre with her son, Emmanuel, who was born with a cleft lip.

Despite Kettleman City’s remote setting amid almond groves and tomato fields, its residents are exposed to a startling array of toxic chemicals (PDF). Nearly 100 trucks spewing diesel fumes roll through town daily on Highway 41, and many more come by on Interstate 5. More than half of Kettleman City’s labor force consists of farmworkers who are routinely exposed to toxic pesticides, and residents can smell the chemicals sprayed on the fields that border the town on three sides. Kettleman City’s two municipal wells are contaminated with naturally occurring arsenic and benzene. And there are projects in the works to build a massive natural gas power plant nearby, as well as to deposit 500,000 tons per year of Los Angeles sewage sludge on farmland a few miles from the town.

But the biggest environmental villain, in the view of local residents, is Waste Management Inc., which operates a vast hazardous-waste dump three miles from town. Waste Management is the nation’s largest waste-disposal company, and the Kettleman Hills landfill is the biggest toxic-waste dump west of Alabama, where another Waste Management facility is located in another poor, minority community. California’s two other toxic-waste dumps are also located near Latino farmworker towns.

A wooden cross made by a friend hangs in one of the Romero household’s two shrines to baby America, who died at five months.

Last year the Kettleman site accepted 356,000 tons of hazardous waste, consisting of tens of thousands of chemical compounds including asbestos, pesticides, caustics, petroleum products, and about 11,000 tons of materials contaminated with PCBs—now-banned chemicals linked to cancer and birth defects. Waste Management has been seeking permission since 2006 to increase the dump’s size by nearly 50 percent.

Special teams coach Jeff Choate might have the most difficult job of any Bronco on Monday night.

His opponent: the man Choate calls “the godfather of special teams in NCAA football.”

Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer coordinates the special teams for the Hokies and spends about the first 45 minutes of every practice working directly with the specialists.

The No. 10 Hokies and No. 3 Broncos meet at 6:06 p.m. MDT Monday at FedExField in Landover, Md.

Choate owns a book Beamer wrote and videos of him speaking about special teams.

“For a guy like myself, there’s probably no bigger test and to a certain degree I’m a little bit flattered to be on the same field with a guy like Frank Beamer,” Choate said.

Special teams often are critical in season openers – and the kicking game should be under additional scrutiny in this one.

Boise State was ranked No. 1 in special teams last year under a formula created by preseason magazine publisher Phil Steele.

Virginia Tech was No. 13, but the Hokies might have the nation’s strongest tradition of special-teams excellence.

“I’ve been very impressed with Boise’s special teams,” Beamer said. “They don’t take a back seat to anybody.”

Beamer’s emphasis on special teams was handed down to him by his former coaches and bosses, he said. He used to assign each special-teams unit to a different coach – a practice some schools still use – but decided to coordinate the special teams himself when a couple of those coaches left.

“I kind of found that was a very efficient way to operate,” he said.

That decision, Choate said, helped create jobs for special-teams junkies like himself.

Choate doesn’t have the typical pedigree for an assistant coach at a top 10 school. He played at Montana-Western and was an Idaho high school coach before catching on at Utah State and Eastern Illinois.

His work with special teams caught coach Chris Petersen’s attention.

“I really think (Beamer) changed the game as much as anybody in the last 20 years,” Choate said. “Twenty years ago there weren’t a lot of guys who were special-teams coordinators at this level. Now there’s not hardly a team that doesn’t have one.”

Special teams also are a tradition at Boise State, which doesn’t get as much notoriety for it as Virginia Tech. Dan Hawkins was the special teams coordinator from 1998 to 2000 and continued to emphasize the kicking game as the head coach from 2001 to 2005.

That carried over to Petersen, who took over in 2006. The Broncos work on special teams extensively and use their stars on those units.

“That’s where the games are won and lost,” said senior wide receiver Titus Young, a kickoff returner and possible punt returner, “and we know how big it is.”

The Broncos, who blocked three kicks last year, should have some of the best special-teams units in school history. They return almost everyone except for punt returner Kyle Wilson. Young scored two TDs on kickoff returns last year. And fourth-year starting kicker/punter Kyle Brotzman expects to eliminate the one significant flaw in his game, the left-hash field goal misses.

“We want to score more touchdowns and block more kicks,” sophomore linebacker J.C. Percy said.

Virginia Tech scored three TDs on special teams last year, including Dyrell Roberts’ 98-yard kickoff return in the season opener against national champion Alabama.

Beamer is so into blocking kicks that he calls his punt-block team “Pride and Joy.” The Hokies only blocked one kick last year but their pressure – and in some cases simply their reputation – forces bad punts and slows down the cover team.

“They’re creating a field-position advantage whether it’s through reality or through perception,” Choate said. “Either way, it’s good for them.”

Said Brotzman: “There are some big dudes on that punt-block line and also some guys that are just freakishly fast. I’ve just got to make sure I get the right reads and get the ball out quick.”

And those aren’t all backups and freshmen chasing Brotzman. Choate has seen as many as nine starters on a Virginia Tech special-teams unit.

“We can’t say that – ever,” he said. “That speaks to the level of importance they’re placing on it.

“They’re really well coached and sound in every single phase. That’s an impressive thing. Usually there’s a chink in the armor somewhere.”

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Updated On Sept. 2:A California court has refused to order Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to appeal a ruling that overturned the state’s gay marriage ban, according to an Associated Press report.

The 3rd District Court of Appeal in Sacramento on Wednesday denied a conservative legal group’s request to force the officials to defend Proposition 8 in court.

The court did not give a reason why it turned down the request by the Pacific Justice Institute.

On Tuesday, we wrote: With the Proposition 8 ban on gay marriage facing the prospect of being thrown out for lack of standing, efforts are underway to get Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to join the defense of the 2008 ballot measure.

The Pacific Justice Institute filed a suit Monday asking the court to compel Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to defend the measure. And all 27 Republican Assembly members signed this letter on Tuesday asking Schwarzenegger to join in the fight to uphold the ban.

Schwarzenegger vetoed bills in 2005 and 2007 to allow same-sex marriage. But after a federal judge ruled Aug. 4 that Prop. 8 was unconstitutional, Schwarzenegger and Brown both said that gay marriages should be allowed to commence immediately.

An appeals court ruled that the ban would continue until an appeal was heard. However, one issue that likely to be considered by the court is whether the current defendants – the backers of Prop. 8 – have standing to do legal battle, since is uncertain whether they would be harmed if gays are allowed to marry. If there are no defendants, then the Aug. 4 ruling stands.

The state, however, has standing should it become involved since it is a state law that is under attack.

Brown said that he would not defend the measure because he believed it to be unconstitutional. The suit seeking to compel the state to defend Prop. 8 says it has an obligation to back state laws.

“It would be truly outrageous for a state constitutional amendment that was passed by over seven million Californians and already determined by the California Supreme Court to have been validly enacted to be overturned by one federal judge, and the People of California have no access to our appellate courts,” said Prop. 8 proponent John Eastman, a former attorney general candidate and a Chapman law school professor.

“The governor can make sure that both sides have access to the courts by filing an appeal. He should do so immediately.”

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If you are a working resident of Arizona state, then the most crucial Arizona State taxes is that you will need to pay attention for is the income tax rates. They are divided into five different groups, ranging from about 2.7 percent to about 4.8 percent. For the complete list of the five groups and their respective rates, you can refer to the data below

For single or married who filed separately:

2.73% will be taxed on the first $10,000 of chargable income

The deadline of filing income levy returns is on the 15th of April. It is not fixed though; if it is on weekend or if it is on a public holiday, then it will be shifted to other dates. There are also extra days that are provided to you by the tax company. For more information of the deadline for the current tax year, you can go to the Arizona State taxes official website directly. There, you can find what the deadline is so that you will not be fined for paying late after the deadline. Remember, deadline is always important because you will not want to spend extra money only because you miss the deadline, won’t you?

The law of Arizona needs the residents and the visitors of Arizona to add in extra goods to Arizona gross product. This comprises of interest income from civic trades that do not come from Arizona state. The capital income must also be included and taxes will be applied to it. For the taxpayers, sales tax is also crucial every time we talk about Arizona State taxes. The current rate for the sales tax is at, more or less, 5.6 percent. Medicine that the residents take and sustenance that the residents possess will not be taxed. However, not all the cities do this; some still charge Arizona state taxes for these two needs. To check for more elaborate information, you can just visit the Arizona official website, so that you know it very well.

Another important information is that Arizona State taxes will comprise of private property taxes. Insubstantial personal property taxes, however, are not charged.

State Fair spokeswoman Brienna Schuette told MPR, “The AG is now involved in getting the Minnesota State Fair name and logo pulled. It appears that the ads with the original logo are still running on some stations.”

Aside from the issues surrounding the use of the fair’s logo, the ad also failed a fact-check at PoliGraph on Wednesday .

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On Monday, the Israeli Prime Minister told his Likud ministers that Israel had made “no proposals” to the Americans on the settlement freeze. Netanyahu said that the future of settlements is not different than other core issues such as borders, Jerusalem and refugees; all of which are to be decided at the final stage.

Israel-Palestine Talks: Will Confidence-Building Measures for Ramallah Work? (Yenidunya)

Gaza Latest: UN’s Flotilla Interviews Start, More Aid Ships?, Worry Over Hamas

Israel-Palestine: Were 4 Settlers Killed to Sabotage Talks? (Yenidunya)

On the same day, Netanyahu told Likud activists at a pre-Rosh Hashana toast in Tel Aviv that he would be cautious during the talks and insist on security guarantees, so an Israeli withdrawal would not be met by the firing of hundreds of rockets. Indeed, Netanyahu said that he was not “naive”.

Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon dismissed Palestinian pre-conditions:

Whoever places the settlements as a precondition is not serious. Preconditions are not conducive to successful negotiations and placing the blame on Israel before the negotiations have even started is extremely unhelpful and damaging for peace. All sides should arrive at the negotiations with good will.

The Palestinian Authority leader Salam Fayyad reiterated Ramallah’s position that the talks will collapse if Israel fails to deliver the extension of settlement freeze. In response to Israeli decision-makers’ emphasis on the “urgent need of guaranteeing Israel’s security”, Fayyad asked a key question: “What kind of state does Mr Netanyahu have in mind when he says ‘Palestinian state’”?

Tags: Benjamin Netanyahu, Danny Ayalon, Israel, Israeli settlements, Jerusalem, Likud, Mahmoud Abbas, Palestine, Palestinian Authority, Salam Fayyad

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 2nd, 2010 at 06:23 and is filed under Middle East & Iran. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

The Institute for Supply Management publishes at 1400 GMT its August manufacturing index. Economists in a review anticipate an interpretation of 53.0 versus 55.5 in July.

The No. 2 U.S. hamburger chain, Burger King Holdings Inc, has been bearing in mind a probable sale and has apprehended discussions with latent buyers, which are basis accustomed with the circumstances expressed on Wednesday.

Automakers are planned to publish August vehicle sales statistics.

Further the Mortgage Bankers Association announced Weekly Mortgage Market Index for the week concluding August 27. The mortgage market index interprets 870.3 and the refinancing index was 4,944.7 in the preceding week.

Resource-linked stocks will be in focal point subsequent to crude oil bounced back by more than by 0.8 percent to top $72 a barrel on China’s manufacturing facts. Important base metals also benefited.

If Burning Man can turn a desert into an oasis, they might help revitalize the mid-Market. “We want to bring our culture there,’’  Harvey said, “without unduly gentrifying the area.”

“We’d like to recreate our hometown,” Harvey said. Noting that the area has beaten all attempts at revitalization, he said, “The city fathers have decided to send in the artists, you know, like ‘Send in the Clowns.’”

The organization is looking to lease a space in the area, with an option to buy. It had been looking to create an educational and cultural center at Fly Ranch, just down the road from the site of the event in the Black Rock Desert. But those negotiations haven’t proceeded well. “We put an offer down and slid it across the table,” board member Will Rogers said,  “and they wrote one down and slid it across the table, but we weren’t speaking the same language.” Rogers did say that those talks are continuing, however.

The dinner was held in a large tent near First Camp, where the founding members of Burning Man stay together, and it was something of a “State of the Union” address.

Marion Goodell saluted Tom Price, who is leaving Black Rock Solar for a private venture, and she said that Burning Man would like to replicate the organizational success Price established at the solar company. Price was among those who went directly to the Gulf Coast after the 2005 Burning Man to help victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. That effort eventually led to the creation of Burners Without Borders, and to Black Rock Solar.

Black Rock Solar’s various installations are providing more than  a million watts  of solar power in Nevada, and Governor Jim Gibbons on Monday proclaimed Route 447 as “America’s Solar Highway,” with more watts of distributed solar per mile than anywhere else in the U.S.

“We did Katrina because we could,” Price said, likening the effort to what happens on the playa. “Apply your gifts to the limits of your imagination.”

Regarding the organizational changes at Burning Man, Harvey said, “We need collaborators. We’ve been doing this for 20 years.” He said the organization would like to prove itself as a nonprofit operation, “and then we’ll just give (the event) away.”

He said that it had been a difficult period that led up to the decision. “I’m 62,” he said. “And each decade has its lessons. … In your 60s, you’re past your insecurities … and you have to face death and imagine a world without you in it.”

In sometimes emotional moments, Harvey said the board members were trying to make sure that their efforts would be sustained. “We’d like to last for the rest of the 21st Century,” Harvey said. “I don’t think that’s too ambitious!”

He appealed to the group for financial and organizational support. “Reach deeper than yourself,” he urged. “Come forward and collaborate with us.”

And with that, a marching band appeared at the entrance to the tent, which was also graced by the Narwhal, a giant playa sailboat that resembles a smiling whale. David Silverman, the “Simpsons” director who likes to play a flaming tuba at the event, led the band for three rousing numbers that sent the participants on their way.

Will Rogers’ jacket shows a lot of history.

David Silverman, working his tuba.

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- NY State gained more than any other state in the number of jobs offered. What is driving this trend?

- Year-over-year growth for the nation was 12%. This pretty respectible for an economy moving sideways at best.

– Manufacturing was down again as was transportation and recreation jobs.

– Healthcare continues to grow – in particular technician and assistant jobs as well as homecare.

– Delaware and CT topped the board with per capital jobs available — hello Wilmington and Westport!

For more info check the full report at Monster.com Employment Index

Follow Jack Hidary on Twitter: www.twitter.com/jackhidary

It has long been a work in progress, but the 8th Street corridor through northeast downtown Cincinnati has evolved into a vibrant district. A district made up of trendy loft living inside former warehouses; diverse establishments like the Blue Wisp Jazz Club, Silverglades, and University Galleries; and an ever-growing collection of design-related businesses.

The progression has been steady and thorough over the past two decades when much of the district was vacant or rundown. But now, a large group of businesses in the district, the City of Cincinnati, and Downtown Cincinnati Inc. have officially formed the 8th Street Design District.

“We began looking around and realized that this area is rich with people and businesses who are passionate about their creative product, whether it’s package design, architecture, music or other related support services,” explained Ken Neiheisel, Chief Creative Officer of Marsh, Inc. and spokesperson for the 8th St. Design District.

Design firms include GBBN Architects, Marsh, KZF Design, Glaserworks, KGB Advertising, and Brandstetter Carroll along with 12 other entities that help make up the district. According to Neiheisel, the firms intend to come together with the goal of creating an inspiring, vibrant area that will aid in increasing the value of their work to the city while also attracting new talent. He also hopes that district branding will help attract other similar companies to the 8th Street Design District.

“There is strength in numbers and we felt that as a group, we could have an impact not only on each other, but on the creative class and economic development in Downtown Cincinnati.”

In order to celebrate the formation of the new 8th Street Design District, and bring the downtown community together, the group has organized a month-long music mini-series on Friday, September 10, 17, and 24. The concerts will take place from 12pm to 1:30pm at the corner of 8th and Broadway. The Faux Frenchmen are scheduled to perform first, with Mix Machine and Rattlesnakin’ Daddies to follow. Those who would like to help the newly formed group, or get more information about the September music mini-series, are instructed to contact Ken Neiheisel at (513) 386-6101.